Italian Open 2024 interrupted by protestors as Madison Keys vs Sorana Cirstea 4R battle sees unexpected delay

Madison Keys' fourth-round encounter with Sorana Cirstea at the 2024 Italian Open on Monday (May 13) was temporarily halted due to a protest. The match was interrupted when Keys was leading 6-2, 3-1.

In the second set, Cirstea was preparing to serve, when two protestors invaded the court, donned orange jackets, and threw confetti on the clay court. This caused the match to be delayed for nearly an hour. Some other protestors glued themselves to their seats. However, the police and firefighters intervened and took the protestors away.

Similar protests were seen at Court 12, where the doubles match between Santiago Gonzalez/ Edouard Roger-Vasselin and Marcelo Arevalo/ Mate Pavic was being played. Pavic and Arevalo downed the fifth seeds 6-1, 6-2 to set up a quarterfinal match against third seeds Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.

According to journalist Jose Morgado, a protest was planned at Grandstand, but it was quelled in the stands.

The protestors belonged to a climate movement called The Last Generation and their reasoning behind the protest was to demand 'repair funds' for climate disasters. They were in Rome, the Italian Open host city, to discuss proposals regarding their demand.

Protests have previously been seen at Wimbledon and the US Open. At Wimbledon 2023, two people wearing 'Just Stop Oil' t-shirts invaded Court 18 and threw confetti and puzzle pieces on the court.

Coco Gauff's semifinal match vs Karolina Muchova at the 2023 US Open also saw a delay of 49 minutes as four protestors stood in the upper levels of the stadium, calling an end to the usage of fossil fuels.

Madison Keys to take on Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals

Madison Keys (L) and Iga Swiatek at the 2024 Madrid Open after their semifinal match

Madison Keys missed the start of the new season due to a shoulder injury. Her return was lackluster as she only won three matches at Indian Wells, Miami Open and Charleston Open.

The American managed to turn around her season with a good showing at the 2024 Madrid Open, reaching the semifinals. She defeated Irina-Camelia Begu, Liudmila Samsonova, Coco Gauff, and Ons Jabeur to set up a semifinal against Iga Swiatek. However, the World No. 1 defeated her 6-1, 6-3.

At the 2024 Italian Open, the World No. 16 defeated Camila Osorio, Beatriz Haddad Maia and Cirstea to set up a rematch with the Pole in the quarterfinals. Swiatek currently leads their head-to-head 3-1.

Madison Keys' best run in Rome came in 2016, when she reached the final but lost to Serena Williams.